Prac pp chp 14

1. Chapter 14
Real Estate Assistants
Time is Money

2. I. Assisting as a Career

3. Assistants
 Having an assistant comes in very handy and should be
more than cost efficient
 An assistant can free the agent to perform activities that
are more productive

4. A. What is a Real Estate
Assistant?
 REAL ESTATE ASSISTANTS are helpmates and
extensions of successful real estate agents
 They are delegated a variety of duties that agents
would normally be required to do in the course of a
business day that takes them away from spending
time in the “field”
 Assistants may be licensed or unlicensed

5. II. Who Hires Assistants?

6. Who Hires?
 According to a survey conducted by the National
Association of Realtors® agents who employed
assistants felt that hiring those assistants contributed
to their firms’ increased profits
 On average, the brokerages with over 50 agents
employed 7 assistants or more, and most successful
smaller firms employed at least 1 or 2

7. A. Your Resume
 Certain characteristics are important to include in your
resume:
 Consistency
 People skills
 Education
 Real estate background
 Skills
 Recommendations
 Personal appearance
 Interests

8. B. Interview Questions
 You should expect to be asked a variety of
questions by a prospective employer
 Brushing up on your skills will only increase your
chances of performing well under the pressure of
the interview process

9. C. The Job Offer
 Now that you’ve been offered a job as an assistant
you have some decisions to make
 Part-time employee
 Full-time employee
 Employee or Independent Contractor
 INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR – pays his taxes, works
with a minimum of supervision and set his own schedule

11. IV. What Do Assistants
Do?

12. A. Alphabetical Filing System
 Files are organized alphabetically by street address
and year
 Any document that has BOTH buyers’ and sellers’
signatures is referred to as a SHARED DOCUMENT

13. B. Master Transaction File
 A MASTER TRANSACTION FILE contains all the
documents a brokerage may require on a single
completed transaction

14. C. Computer Filing
 Computer files are more convenient, less time
consuming, take up less space and are more “green”
than the “old school” method of saving every piece of
paper generated by a real estate transaction
 For a variety of reasons, however, you should still keep
a paper file containing signed copies and originals of
documents for each transaction

15. D. Updating Data
 The inventory of homes must be kept current
 As an assistant, you can take on the task of keeping
all listings current
 Your agent’s website also needs to be updated
regularly

16. E. Keeping and Assisting with
Appointments
 Keeping track of your agent’s appointments in a
timely fashion is also important
 You need to know where and how to reach your
agent at all times
 Determine which documents your agent prefers to
take on listing/selling appointments and make up
packets ahead of time

17. F. Staying in Touch with Your
Agent’s Clients
 Keeping your agent in constant contact with prospects
is a very rewarding task for both of you

18. G. Technology
 You may be asked to take pictures of your agent’s
new listings
 MLS services have the capability of entering ten
pictures for each listing
 Many real estate software programs are available to
help with a variety of tasks for example:
 Letter writing
 Microsoft Excel® for spreadsheets
 Top Producer® keeps agent’s databases
 Mobile is the way to go for CAR® forms

19. H. Notary Public
 Being a notary public is extremely helpful in real
estate and to your agent
 As an assistant, you can perform this duty for your
agent’s clients
 The following are required of a notary public:
 Thumb print required
 Purpose of notarization
 18 years old and California resident for last 12 months
 Official Seal of Notary

20. I. Escrow Coordinator
 Your agent may want you to assist with escrows
 You will need to have all the pertinent information on
the transaction and a good understanding of the
escrow process

21. J. Follow-Up Details
 After finalizing a closing, now is the time to review the
transaction with your agent to decide if some
improvements can be made for the next one
 This should be an ongoing endeavor to fine tune your
skills for the highest efficiency

22. Chapter Summary
• Assisting as a Career
• What is a Real Estate Assistant?
• Why Become an Assistant?
• Who Hires Assistants?
• When Does An Agent Need an
Assistant?
• Getting the Job Done
• Your Resume
• Interview Questions
• The Job Offer
• What Do Assistants Do?
• Office Administration
• Updating Data
• Keeping and Assisting with
Appointments
• Staying in Touch with Your Agent’s
Clients
• Technology
• Notary Public
• Escrow Coordinator
• Follow-Up Details